Lightning News

LIGHTNING RECALL CENTER CRAIG MACDONALD

TAMPA BAY - The Tampa Bay Lightning have recalled center Craig MacDonald from the Norfolk Admirals of the American Hockey League, Executive Vice President and General Manager Jay Feaster announced.

MacDonald, a 6-foot-1, 201-pound native of Antigonish, Nova Scotia, skated in 14 games with the Lightning this season and recorded one assist before being assigned to Norfolk on November 13. In seven games with the Admirals he recorded three goals, eight assists and eight penalty minutes as the team posted a 4-2-1 record.

MacDonald, signed as a free agent by Tampa Bay on July 2, 2007, has played in 174 career NHL games with the Lightning, Carolina, Florida, Boston, Calgary and Chicago, recording eight goals and 23 points. He spent last season in the Blackhawks organization, skating in 25 games in Chicago while playing 50 games for Norfolk, where he served as captain. MacDonald, 30, scored three goals and recorded two assists with Chicago and tallied 15 goals and 40 points in Norfolk. He finished the season in Norfolk with a plus-9 rating, six power-play goals and four shorthanded goals.

MacDonald is a veteran of 320 AHL games, recording 79 goals and 232 points in eight seasons with New Haven, Lowell, San Antonio, Omaha and the Admirals. He also spent two seasons with Cincinnati of the IHL where he played in 160 games and tallied 32 goals and 84 points. MacDonald played collegiate hockey at Harvard, appearing in 66 games in two seasons with the Crimson, totaling 13 goals and 33 points. He was originally drafted by Hartford in the fourth round, 88th overall, at the 1996 NHL Entry Draft.